


But We're Not Friends

by previouslyonavatar



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: F/F, Fake/Pretend Relationship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-01
Updated: 2016-07-04
Packaged: 2018-04-24 07:45:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4911136
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/previouslyonavatar/pseuds/previouslyonavatar
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Max and Victoria share a mutual crush and it’s obvious to everyone but them. When they both get tired of their friends’ endless teasing, they hatch a plan together to get them off their backs. It does not go exactly as planned.</p><p>(AU where Rachel is still alive)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Max sighed softly as she leaned against the wall of Chloe and Rachel's secret place in the junkyard. Even though she had been here a few times now, she still couldn't help but feel like an outsider. It was nice to hang out with Chloe after a particularly annoying and tiring day at school, but when Rachel was there things tended to be a little awkward, though privately suspected she was the only one that thought so.  
  
Max glanced at the graffiti on the wall, where she had added her own name under Chloe and Rachel's. Chloe had said it was okay, but Max couldn't tell how Rachel felt about it. The older girl was nice to her but she seemed somewhat aloof. It sometimes felt like she was above it all, better than anyone without really trying. It still made Max feel jealous occasionally, knowing she could never live up to this girl who replaced her in Chloe's life, even if it was her own fault that she got replaced in the first place.

"What's up Max? You're lookin' gloomy." Chloe’s voice snapped her out of her thoughts. She was watching Max with some concern, a cigarette dangling carelessly from her fingers. Rachel looked up from her phone too, giving Max a curious look.

Max didn't really want to talk about her insecurities right now. Chloe would laugh everything off like it wasn't even a problem, and Max had no desire to let Rachel know about anything she thought about her. Luckily, there were multiple reasons for her sour mood, ones that had been irritating Max since her first class this morning.

With a deep breath, she let her frustration out in a rush.  "I'm just thinking about class today. Victoria was totally insufferable in photography. She kept rubbing it in my face that _she_ had all the right answers and I didn't.” She scowled, waving her hands around in exasperation. “She only got a good grade on her paper because she made one of her servants do it for her, she's got no right to act so superior, even if her shots are pretty good. I just wish she’d realize she doesn’t need to suck up so much.”

To Max's annoyance, Chloe just looked amused. "I was wondering when you'd bring her up today. Congrats, Mad Max. This must be a new record...” She teased.

Max felt her face flush a little. "What? I don't talk about her that much." She replied defensively, crossing her arms.

Chloe rolled her eyes, giving Rachel a slightly exasperated look, in a ‘can you believe this?’ kind of way. She crushed her cigarette on the floor, leaving a small black mark, before turning to Max. With a serious face, she placed both hands on her shoulders.

"I don't know how to break this to you, Max, so I'm just gonna say it. You have a serious, very big, very gay crush on Victoria Chase.” She grinned. “I won't comment on your taste, but it's hella obvious.”

Max felt herself go red. She scooted back until her back rested against a wall, safely out of Chloe's reach. "Don't make me laugh, Chloe. You're being ridiculous." If Rachel hadn't been here Max might have suggested Chloe was projecting her own shit onto her, but that would have been cruel now so she kept it inside, simply glaring at her.

"Please, Max. It's a total case of girl on girl crushing. You're displaying all the symptoms." A quick, barely noticeable look at Rachel, who either didn't notice or tactfully pretended not to. "Believe me, I know the signs."

Max rolled her eyes, but she knew the effect was diminished by the fact that her cheeks were still burning. "Whatever, Doctor Chloe. I think it's time to revoke your medical license."

Chloe tugged Max back into arm's reach and slung an arm around her shoulders, giving her a small squeeze. "Rachel, has Max ever not mentioned Victoria while chilling with us?  Like, seriously ever?"

"Nope." Rachel said, looking up from her phone with a slightly apologetic smile. "Sorry Max, but you do mention her a lot. You even described her outfits in detail a few times." She shrugged, meeting Max' eyes. "It's kinda cute."

"It's hella fucking cute." Chloe said cheerfully, still holding Max against her. "Now we only have to find out if she feels the same way and you can live happily ever after in pretentious hipster photo land."

Max deflated a bit, there was no use protesting. Chloe had made up her mind, and to be honest, she wasn't entirely wrong. It was strange, having a crush on a girl like Victoria. She could go from kind of pleasant to downright nasty in a heartbeat, yet Max couldn't help but feel drawn to her. Feelings were weird like that, and there was no avoiding the fact that sometimes, they sucked. The more glimpses Max caught of a kinder side of Victoria, the more she wanted to know her better. Unfortunately, it was obvious that those glimpses were nothing but accidental, Victoria clearly didn’t feel anything positive towards Max, every time things had the potential to get even slightly friendly, she pushed Max away with a vehemence soon after.

"You don't have to bother.” Max said quickly. “She doesn't even like me, at all. Let alone like me in that way. There's no use talking about it any longer.” She couldn’t mask her eagerness for this conversation to be over, wishing Chloe had never brought it up.

Chloe frowned a little. "You're giving up way too soon Maximus, I think you're underestimating just how adorable you are.” She grinned encouragingly. “Besides, it totally sounds like she pays a lot of attention to you too. You’re always on each other’s case. It’s honestly some romantic comedy bullshit happening here.”

“Why don’t we just ask her?” Rachel asked, grinning as she started typing on her phone.

“No!” Max scrambled up from her sitting position on the floor and over to Rachel. “You can’t just _ask._ ”

“Why not? I have her number from when I went to Blackwell.”  Rachel grinned.

“I thought she hated you.” Chloe piped up.

“Sort of.” Rachel shrugged. “Relax, Max. She won’t know you’re reading her answer.”

Max still felt anxious as she looked over Rachel’s shoulder at her phone screen which showed the text Rachel just typed.

* * *

**Rachel** :  
Hey Victoria. Quick question, do you like Max? Just saying, she seems like your type. 

* * *

It wasn’t long before she got a reply.

* * *

**Victoria** :  
WTF

 **Victoria** :  
y would you even ask that? NO! are u joking ????  
  
**Victoria** :  
im so sick of u rachel. fuck OFF, you dont even know me or my type 

* * *

Chloe grabbed Rachel’s phone from her hand and casually read the texts, smirking. “Oh, she’s totally protesting too much here.”

“That’s just how she texts.” Max mutters, crossing her arms. “I think she’s being pretty clear.”

Rachel laughs, touching Max’ shoulder casually before accepting her phone back from Chloe. “You need to read between the lines girl, it’s all there. I’ve known her longer than you have. There’s a big chance she has a crush on you, we just have to find out for sure.”

Max couldn't help reading over Rachel's shoulder as she typed out a reply.

* * *

**Rachel** :  
Chill, it was just a joke, something Chloe suggested. You’re really way too high strung and stressed, girl, I know a few things that could help with that if you need. Take care. xx

* * *

It was just the right amount of fake concern with a condescending tone for it to drive Victoria mad, Max knew. She sighed.

“You’re both way too invested.” She said, getting up while checking her own phone. “I have to go, I was going to meet up with Kate.” Well, maybe she hadn’t been, but Max was sure Kate wouldn’t mind meeting up. She just needed to get out of here.  As nice as it was to hang out with Chloe, the whole situation was making her uncomfortable. She wished they’d just hung out together, without Rachel. Chloe seemed to forget that Max and Rachel weren’t really friends with each other, even if they were both close to her. It was nice to be included, but the conversation today had gotten way too involved in Max’ personal life to be fun anymore.  It was just embarrassing.

By the look Chloe gave her, Max could tell she knew it was a lie. Thankfully, Chloe didn’t say anything, and Max felt her annoyance seep away. Chloe was a good friend, even if she teased Max sometimes, it wasn’t Chloe's fault that she was more open and less private than Max was.

Chloe's lack of complaint was probably helped by the fact that she would get some time alone with Rachel. Whatever Chloe said, it was obvious she still had a crush on her. It really sucked that Rachel was seeing that creep, Frank. Chloe still obviously wasn’t okay with it, she hadn’t even mentioned it once since Rachel told her a few weeks ago, and Max couldn’t blame her. She didn’t understand what Rachel saw in a guy like that, especially compared to someone cool like Chloe. It would probably remain a mystery, Max wasn’t nearly confident enough to ask Rachel about it and Chloe wouldn’t either.

“See you.” Rachel said casually, waving at her before looking at her back at her phone. .

Chloe clapped her on the shoulder. “Don’t be a stranger, Mad Max.” She said, giving her a smile and a wave.

“I’ll text you tonight.” Max promised before leaving the shack.  She couldn’t help but think back to Victoria’s texts, wondering if she really was protesting too much. It seemed like typical Victoria, but maybe it was possible there was some hope.

Max shook her head, walking across the junkyard.  Rachel and Chloe were clouding her judgement, there was no way Victoria felt anything but contempt for her. Max would have to deal with that, not live in denial. Life was too short to waste time dwelling on impossible things.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beta read by [Rowan](http://archiveofourown.org/users/pootje/pseuds/pootje)


	2. Chapter 2

“So Max, what’s on your mind?”

Max looked up from where she had been gazing into her teacup, up at Kate’s face. To her embarrassment, she realized that she hadn’t been paying attention to what they’d been talking about.

“Sorry, I was just distracted.”

This made Kate smile. “I can see that, it’s pretty obvious. But what is distracting you so much?” There was a curious glint in Kate’s eyes that was somehow knowing. It made Max shift in her seat, hoping she wasn’t blushing.

“It’s nothing.”

“Oh come on, Max. You can tell me.” Kate paused, her smile dropping. “But you don’t have to, of course.”

They were sitting in Kate’s dorm room. She had been happy to spend time with Max once she texted. They had chatted and Kate had shown her some of her new drawings, but Max’s thoughts had constantly drifted back to the conversation at the junkyard, and to the texts Victoria had sent to Rachel’s phone. She had half expected Victoria to send something to her, as well, but so far she hadn’t. The only text she’d gotten was from Chloe, asking if she was okay and saying that they’d just been having some fun, telling her not to be upset. She hadn’t replied yet.

“It’s nothing bad, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

Kate smiled again, looking genuinely relieved. “Oh, good. I was a little worried for a second.”

Max battle with herself for a moment, unsure of how to continue. She looked down at her teacup again and then glanced around the room nervously. For a few seconds, she watched Kate’s bunny hop around in it’s cage. Without taking her eyes off the animal, she decided to talk. If anyone would give her good advice without making fun of her, it was Kate.

“So, I might have a crush on someone.” Max muttered under her breath.

Kate beamed and clapped her hands together happily. “I knew it!”

Max groaned. “Not you too.”

This made Kate quickly stop clapping, she put her hands in her lap and tried to stop smiling. “I’m sorry, I meant that I’m completely surprised.”

“What gave it away?”

Kate shrugged. “It’s just something about your face, and how you keep daydreaming. It was just a guess, honestly.”

Max smiled. “At least you’re not teasing me.”

Kate giggled. “So far, Max.” She looked up at her with a grin. “There’s always time.”

Max couldn’t help smiling back at her friend. “From you, I can take it.”

“So… what’s his name?”

If Max had been thinking instead of just reacting, she might have tried to find a more sensitive way to break that it wasn’t a guy she was crushing on. Unfortunately, she wasn’t thinking. Instead, she looked at Kate in complete confusion and said. “His?”

What followed, was an awkward silence in which Kate’s expression changed from confusion, to shock, to embarrassment in a manner of seconds. “Oh!” She said, her cheeks turning a faint pink. “Oh dear, I didn’t mean to assume.”

“Oh, no I’m sorry. I should have said.” Max heard herself say awkwardly, silently cursing her own cheeks for heating up too. “It’s just that it’s a girl.”

She realized she wasn’t actually sure how Kate felt about that. It hadn’t occurred to her that she might be against it because of her religion. Dread pooled in her stomach, she really hoped it wasn’t like that.

Some of her apprehension must have shown on her face because Kate quickly shook her head. “It’s not that I’m against it, or anything.” She said quickly. “Not at all! Max, I’m sorry. I was just surprised. I thought you liked Warren.”

Max blinked. “Warren? Oh, not really.” She said, scratching her neck.

“I think he likes you.” Kate said carefully, like she wasn’t sure how Max would react.

She sighed and nodded. “I know… it’s not that subtle. I just… I don’t feel the same way.”

Kate looked down. “That’s a shame, he’s nice.” She said. “I guess that’s why I thought you liked him, I think I sort of wanted you to, so he wouldn’t be heartbroken.”

“He is nice.” Max agreed. “We’re good friends, I just think that’s all we’ll be.”

Kate nodded in understanding. She looked like she was deep in thought. “So… is it someone from Blackwell?”

Max nodded silently, not sure if she wanted Kate to know.

“That means it can’t be your blue haired friend, right?” Kate asked, tilting her head again.

“Oh, uh, no.” Max said, feeling more awkward than ever. If truth be told, she wasn’t really sure how she felt about Chloe. It was certainly a lot more complicated than a simple crush or a simple friendship. “It’s not Chloe.” She said, pushing those thoughts away for now.

“Is it Dana? Lots of people like her.”

Max shook her head, not sure if she liked this guessing game.

“Brooke? That would be sort of awkward seeing how she has a crush on Warren, it’d be like a real love triangle.”

That made Max smile a little. “No, it’s not her either.”

She saw a note of anxiety enter Kate’s face and knew instantly what she was thinking. She laughed softly and shook her head. “Don’t worry Kate, it’s not you either. You’re just a good friend.”

Kate laughed too but still looked slightly embarrassed at the same time. “Sorry, it’s not that I wouldn’t be flattered…”

Max nodded. “I know.” She said quickly, wishing the uncomfortable moment would be over soon. There was only one way to speed it up. “I’ll tell you.” She said, wishing she wasn’t so nervous. “It’s Victoria.”

Kate’s face changed from surprise to disbelief. “Her? But she’s…” She trailed off, uncomfortable.

“Mean? Arrogant? Bitchy?” Max asked, smiling a little.

Kate blushed. “Unpleasant.” She said. “Sometimes.”

Max sighed. “I know… but there’s more to her, I think.” She shrugged, wishing she didn’t have to explain herself like this. “I don’t know, it’s just a crush, they don’t always make sense.”

Kate nodded, thinking. “Do you know…” She paused, thinking over her words. “Does she like girls?”

“I have no idea. “Max muttered. “Even if she did, I think there’s loads of girls she’d like before me.”

“You’re very likeable, Max.” Kate said solemnly. She’d be a fool not to like you.”

“She doesn’t even like me breathing the same air as her.” Max muttered. “I think that’s answer enough.”

Kate smiled. “She could just be acting extra mean because she doesn’t want to face her own feelings. Besides, they say love and hate are two sides of the same coin.”

“I know it’s hopeless, Kate.” Max said, shrugging. “But I still can’t help it.”

“Are you going to tell her?”

“No!” Max said, alarmed. “I just told you, she doesn’t feel the same way. Besides, I’d never hear the end of it. She’ll probably photoshop some weird pictures of me and put them all over social media.”

“Or she says she likes you too and you go on a date.” Kate said, looking cheerful.

“You make it sound so easy.” Max muttered. “I don’t even know what we would do on a date.”

“Well, you ask her. I’m sure Victoria knows what she wants.” Kate said, a little teasingly.

This made Max smile a little. “Right, I bet she does.”

“Now I see it.” Kate exclaimed happily. “That’s the sappy crush smile.”

“It’s not!” Max replied immediately, the smile disappearing from her face in a flash. The happy look on Kate’s face was enough to melt her annoyance, however, and a smile soon returned. “You’re ridiculous.”

“I really think you should tell her.” Kate said. “You never know.”

“Believe me, Kate, I know.” Max said. “I don’t want to.”

“Alright…” Kate said. “It’s up to you.”

“Let’s talk about something else.” Max said after a short pause. “This is making me sort of sad.” It was easy to admit, to Kate. Being honest was something that was hard when the person could be mean in return, but Kate never was. She just nodded, smiled her kind smile, and started talking about her drawings again. Max felt grateful, and tried not to let her thoughts wander this time as she listened to her friend.

\---

Victoria was pissed the fuck off. She leaned closer to her reflection in the mirror, trying to see if she had put on enough concealer to hide the dark circles that had appeared under her eyes. It was all that bitch Rachel Amber’s fault. Her and her stupid texts. Victoria had spent most of the night awake, thinking back to what the other girl had asked her. It was such a random question to ask, whether or not she liked Max Caulfield. Unless… unless she somehow knew.

No. No she couldn’t know. Nobody did, not even Nathan. It was just a lucky guess. At least, that’s what Victoria had tried to tell herself when she couldn’t sleep. But no matter how much she repeated it in her head, she couldn’t shake the feeling that somehow, Rachel Amber had read her mind. There had always been something weird about her, something unnatural that made her fucking perfect in everyone’s eyes. Well, not to Victoria, she was sick to death of her meddling ass.

It wasn’t exactly something she was proud of, crushing on the dorky hipster that was everything she was supposed to hate. But there was something about Max that made it infuriatingly hard to dislike her. Victoria knew she was weak, weak for being unable to push down those emotions until they no longer existed, being unable to simply ignore it. She bet Rachel never worried about things like this, she would just go out and get whoever she liked at that moment without a care in the world. Whatever, Victoria didn’t want to be like her anyway.

After checking her appearance one last time in the mirror, Victoria turned away and left her room. As she walked to the exit of the dorms, she started texting rapidly, all her attention on her phone. She wanted to bury Rachel’s name on her screen under a bunch of other people she would rather talk to, besides, Courtney was late with her paper and sending a few bitchy texts her way was the perfect way to burn off some of her annoyance. Just as she was about to press send on a particular scathing text, she bumped into someone in the hallway and dropped her phone to the floor.

A curse left her as she immediately bent down to make sure her phone was undamaged, luckily for whoever it was she had run into, it was. Still, this was unacceptably. “Can’t you watch where you’re going?!” She snapped, looking up straight into the face of Max Caulfield, the last person she wanted to see right now. Her anger changed immediately to shock and then to an overwhelming feeling of awkwardness. Weren’t Max and Rachel friends? She couldn’t quite remember, but she was sure they knew each other, what if Max had heard Rachel’s stupidly accurate theory? She didn’t even want to think about that.

Max, on her part, seemed as stunned as Victoria felt for a moment before she crossed her arms in front of herself and her expression turned into a resigned sort of annoyance. It looked like she had just come out of Kate’s room, and she probably hadn’t seen Victoria coming at all. That didn’t mean it wasn’t her fault, though, Victoria stubbornly told herself. Even little kids knew to look both ways.

“It seems to me that you’re the one who wasn’t watching where you were going.” Max said, giving her phone a pointed glance.

“Whatever, I have a social life.” Victoria snapped back. “Maybe you would have one if you weren’t such a try hard hipster.”

It was a weak retort and they both knew it. Max didn’t even say anything in return, she just raised her eyebrows. Annoyed, and a little nervous about the possibility of Max knowing more than she should, Victoria shoved past her with unnecessary force, making her way out of the dorm without looking back. Her heart was pounding in her chest and it sickened her. She hadn’t said the right thing at all, she reflected angrily, though she wasn’t sure if she should have been meaner or nicer to the other girl.

She had no way of knowing that Max watched her leave, snapping out of it only as the door closed and blocked her from view, feeling just as angry with herself as Victoria did in that moment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beta read by [Rowan](http://archiveofourown.org/users/pootje/pseuds/pootje)


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for taking so long! I hope it was worth the wait!

The first time Max’ phone buzzed, she ignored it. She was having a pleasant nap, and figured that whoever was texting her could wait a little longer.

Unfortunately, the person on the other end didn’t agree. One text was followed by two more, then after a slight pause, another. The buzzing sound of her phone vibrating against her nightstand suddenly felt like the single most annoying noise in the entire universe. Blindly, Max grabbed the still vibrating phone and looked at the screen with bleary eyes, trying to make her sleepy brain focus on the jumble of tiny letters on the screen. Rachel and Chloe had both texted her quite a few times, and Chloe was typing again already. Max felt her annoyance soften slightly as she caught sight of Chloe's picture next to the texts. She rubbed her eyes and began to read.

* * *

 **Rachel** :  
Max, party tonight, you're coming. No excuses! It's gonna be hilarious.

 **Rachel** :  
It's a vortex club party, I got like six different people asking me to come, guess they miss me. Anyway, I'm taking you and Chloe to crash the party and make some real fun. ;)

* * *

  
Nothing about these texts made Max feel particularly excited for a party. She knew Rachel would probably think she was lame if she refused, but the last thing she wanted was to have to endure a vortex club party of all things.

She was about to tell Rachel this, when a new text from Chloe reminded her that her best friend had also texted her.

* * *

 **Chloe** :  
max! It's gonna be hella awesome, we’ll show those fucking snobs how to party!

* * *

 Surprisingly, the second text had a more serious tone, making Chloe sound less excited and more uncertain.

* * *

 **Chloe** :  
seriously tho max, rachel knows tons of people there. I know she likes me most but she'll have a ton of friends at Blackwell that want her attention, you have to come

* * *

Max felt a strange mix of guilt and annoyance. There was no way she could say no after Chloe’s second text, and the implication that unlike Rachel, Max wouldn't have many friends at the party, however true, stung a bit.

With her fingers still slightly stiff and clumsy from sleep, it took Max a few times to type out her response.

* * *

 **Max** :  
I don't know if I'll stay very long, I have homework.

* * *

Chloe's reply was nearly instantaneous.

* * *

 **Chloe** :

psh, it's friday! you have loads of time to do your boring homework later

 **Max** :  
I guess I'll come for a bit.

 **Chloe** :  
awesome, tell rachel too

* * *

Max sighed and quick trapped out a text to Rachel, telling her she would go. She had a sneaking suspicion she and Chloe were actually in the same place right now, talking about her as they pretended to text her separately. Maybe it was paranoid, but Max couldn't shake the feeling.

Rachel replied with a happy smiley face and a question about what Max would wear. She ignored it. The last thing she wanted was to give Rachel the opportunity to give her fashion advice. Honestly, all she planned to do this evening was quickly make an appearance and then leave, vortex club parties weren’t exactly her style.

\---

Victoria turned in front of the mirror, inspecting her outfit for the party carefully. Both Taylor and Courtney were hanging out on her bed, watching her. They had both already enthusiastically approved, but Victoria knew they would have loved it even if she was wearing a plastic bag. No, she would have to make sure she looked great herself.

Courtney looked up from her phone and spoke up over the music Victoria was blasting as she tried on clothes. “I just heard Amber is coming tonight.” She said, grinning.

Victoria rolled her eyes, shooting Courtney a dirty look. “Right, because I care about what that bitch does.”

Her words didn’t have the effect she had intended because Courtney’s smile didn’t falter for even a second. “I know you don’t, but I heard she’s bringing a guest that might interest you. I think it’ll be the first time Caulfield shows up at one of these parties.”

The words made Victoria’s heart skip a beat but she could see in the mirror that her expression didn’t give anything away. She turned and faced Courtney, raising a single eyebrow. “So?”

She couldn’t help but notice that the direct confrontation made Courtney shrink back the slightest bit, good.

“I just thought you might be interested. I bet she’ll look ridiculous.” Courtney answered, averting her eyes.

Victoria couldn’t be sure if the other girl suspected something about her silly crush or if she had just been trying to make fun of Max together. She had confessed to them that she liked girls a few months before, and now she was starting to regret it. Either way, she really didn’t want to talk or think about Max Caulfield any more than they already had, still trying to process that she would see her at the party tonight. But before Victoria could try to change the subject in any way, Taylor piped up from where she was lying back and gazing at her phone. “I bet she’ll wear the same shirt and jeans. Do you think she sleeps in those clothes?”

“I don’t know, Taylor,” Victoria snapped before she could stop herself. “But at least she won’t be wearing a dress that will blind the entire room. Maybe you and Courtney should go get ready yourselves, instead of watching me.”

She was, of course, fully aware of the fact that she had asked them to watch her get ready in her room in the first place, but she suddenly wanted nothing more than to make them leave. Nevertheless, she felt slightly guilty as she watched her friend’s looks of surprise and confusion as they got up to get ready in their own rooms.

As soon as the door closed behind Taylor, who called a fake cheerful “see you later!”, Victoria sat down on the bed she had just ordered her friends to vacate, burying her face in her hands. She couldn’t decide if she wanted to go to the party and impress everyone even more now, or just take off her dress, put on pajamas and sleep. It didn’t matter what she wanted, everyone expected her there. No one, not even Max, could be allowed to potentially damage her reputation at school.

\---

Chloe’s car pulled up at the Blackwell parking lot and Max smiled as she saw Chloe waving at her from the driver’s seat. It relieved her a little to see that she was going to be wearing her usual clothes to the party as well, at least she wouldn’t stand out too much.

The door opened as Max walked up to the car, both Chloe and Rachel were laughing as they climbed out. A small jealous part of Max wanted to know exactly what they were having so much fun about. Ignoring the impulse to ask, she high fived Chloe as she came near.

“Ready to party?” Chloe practically shouted, even as she slung an arm around Max’ shoulders. “Let’s show those Blackwell snobs how to have fun!”

Before Max could answer, Rachel came up at her other side, flashing a grin at Chloe. “Every single one of us was a student at this school once, are you calling us snobs?”

“Yes, but I love you anyway.” Chloe answered, sticking out her tongue. “So where is this party, anyway?”

“Just follow the noise.” Max said, “and the line of people entering the pool building over there.”

“Detective Maximus is on the case.” Chloe joked, leading both Max and Rachel into the building.

The music was loud and pulsing, Max could feel the bass inside her chest like a heartbeat as they entered the pool area. There was movement everywhere as people danced in the flickering light.

Before she could stop herself, she was scanning the crowd for a blonde head. But to her disappointment, Victoria was nowhere to be seen. It was likely that she was enjoying herself in the curtained off area that was reserved for the Vortex club, which would mean Max wouldn’t even see her.

Rachel must have seen the disappointment on her face or the way her eyes had darted to the Vortex club area because she put her hand on Max’ arm with a reassuring smile. “No worries, I’ll get us in there.”

\---  
Victoria was hiding, and she knew it. When Taylor and Courtney had suggested staying near the pool for a little while longer, Victoria had simply shaken her head and made a beeline for the Vortex club area. Now she was standing in the back, behind both Taylor and Courtney as they drank and gossiped. If either girl had noticed how she was trying not to stand out, they knew better than to mention it to her. It wasn’t like she was scared, please. But that didn’t mean she wanted to see Max here, especially if she was accompanied by Rachel and her perfect smug face.

She was snapped out of her thoughts when Taylor said her name. Both her and Courtney were looking at Victoria expectantly, clearly having asked her a question and waiting for an answer. Victoria realized with a start that she had been tuning out the conversation for the past few minutes and had absolutely no idea what they had been talking about. Instead of embarrassing herself by trying to guess or to admit that she hadn’t been listening, she put her drink down firmly on the nearest surface. “I wanna dance.” She said, before walking straight to the dancefloor without looking back. There was no doubt they would follow.

Dancing had been the right idea. It wasn’t long until all her anxious thoughts had been chased away by the persistent bass that was pounding both around her and inside her skull. She moved without thinking, forgetting everything around her. It felt glorious.

Well, it did until she turned around and almost collided with the very person she had been trying so hard to avoid. Max Caulfield. Victoria reflexively took a step back, causing her to lose her balance on her high heels and stumble. Before she could fall backwards, she felt a firm grip on her arm as Max pulled her back onto her feet.

“Victoria, we have to stop meeting like this.” She quipped, an infuriatingly adorable smile on her face. Courtney had been right about Max’ clothes, she wore what she usually did, but unfortunately it didn’t make her look ridiculous in the least.

It took Victoria a moment longer than usual to gather her thoughts, but to her relief, she didn’t stumble over her words. “Careful Max, or I might start to think it was on purpose.”

Was that too flirty? Too obvious? The dancing and the music made her feel emboldened and her heart was pounding in her chest.

“Maybe I just wanted to dance.” Max replied, though she looked a little nervous.

Victoria decided not to answer. Instead, she looked Max in the eye as she started to move to the music again, daring her to join.

When Max started to dance too, it was immediately clear that she wasn’t as used to it as Victoria was. Her movements were halting and a little awkward, but before long she was grinning as she moved along with Victoria, both of them keeping their eyes on one another.

They lost themselves in the moment, forgetting where they were, who they were with and what they were doing. It wasn’t until the song ended that they seemed to come back to earth, both realizing at the same time that their little moment hadn’t gone unnoticed. A small group of people was gathered around them, their expressions ranging from surprise to delight. To her fury, she could see Rachel Amber, leaning on the blue haired girl with her phone up, clearly filming them. It seemed to upset Max even more, because after one look at her friends she turned and pushed her way through the crowd to get away, without saying another word to Victoria or even giving her a second look.

\---

All Max could focus on as she pushed her way through the crowd was that she needed to get out, and to get out now. The atmosphere of the party had turned oppressive and overpowering, making her feel like she couldn’t breathe. She pushed and elbowed her way to the door, ignoring comments and looks other students shot her way.

It was an immense relief when the cool night air finally made contact with her skin. Max let the door close behind her, reducing the sounds of the party to a distant thumping. She sighed and leaned against the wall. Now that she had a moment to reflect, the embarrassment of the earlier moment hit her in full force, causing her to close her eyes and emit a tiny groan. What had come over her? Something had overtaken her when she had finally seen Victoria’s blonde hair from a distance, and she had headed in her direction thoughtlessly, never considering the consequences. Though, even if she had, she doubted she would have ever been able to foresee what had actually happened. Not in her wildest dreams. And it had felt like a dream, a dream that had turned into a nightmare the moment she remembered the crowd around them.

The sound of the door opening behind her interrupted her thoughts. She didn’t need to turn around to know it was Chloe that had followed her out.

“Max.”

It wasn’t Chloe. Victoria had followed her. Max felt her heartbeat speed up once again as she turned around.


	4. Chapter 4

If someone had stopped time and asked Victoria right this second what she had been thinking, going after Max, she wouldn’t have had an answer. It was pure foolishness, but there was something that had sent her after the other girl, something she couldn’t, and wouldn’t put into words.

Without the music, the flickering lights and the bustle of bodies all around them. The fact that she was here with Max felt a lot more real. The dance they shared together before it had been interrupted had felt like a dream, but now she was sure they were both awake.

Max wasn’t looking at her, so without taking a moment to think or change her mind, Victoria let her know she was here.

“Max.”

Max turned, surprise written all over her face. She hadn’t expected Victoria. Maybe even hoped for someone else. Maybe Chloe, maybe Rachel. Neither idea appealed to Victoria, she wanted Max to think of her first, even if she had done nothing to deserve that.

“Um. Hi. “Max replied after a pause that went on just a moment too long. “Sorry for, you know… running off.”

“I can’t blame you.” Victoria said, moving closer to Max in what she hoped was a casual manner. “That was a bitchy move your friends pulled.”

“I… I probably overreacted.” Max shrugged, looking at her sideways. “I’m fine.”

It was colder outside than Victoria had anticipated and she shivered, hugging herself. The dress she had picked for the party hadn’t been chosen by it’s ability to cover her skin, and she regretted not bringing a jacket.

Without a word, Max unzipped that hoodie she was always wearing and held it out to Victoria. It took her a moment to realize what the other girl was doing, and then she felt herself blush. This wasn't fair. Being charming seemed to just come naturally to this infuriating girl. How was Victoria supposed to be cool and collected around her if Max did things like this?

"Thanks." She muttered, taking it after a moment of hesitation. "Won't you be cold, though?"

A shrug and a frustratingly cute little smile was her response. "I'll be fine." She added, when Victoria still didn't seem sure. 

Then a silence fell between them after she shrugged into the hoodie. Victoria had come here with a reason, with a plan, an idea, but now she felt like anything that would come out of her mouth would just sound silly.

But she couldn't just stand here silently either. Something had to be done.

"So, is Rachel always this mean to her friends?"

The question startled Max and then made her look vaguely uncomfortable. "She's not. She doesn't mean it like that. She just doesn't take things like that all that seriously."

_Things like what?_

"I guess that's easy to do when everyone's after you." Victoria muttered. The hoodie was nice and warm and she had to admit that she couldn't blame Max for wearing it all the time. She couldn't help but notice that it smelled like her too, and held it a little tighter around herself. “But still, it’s like she was mocking you. Us.”

Max sighed. “Look, I didn’t want to tell you this and make this weird, but she’s sort of been trying to play matchmaker.” Even in the dim light Victoria could see the faint blush on Max' face.

"Like, between us?" Victoria asked, her heart jumping into her throat. "Why?" She could only hope that little word didn't sound as eager and hopeful to Max as it did to her own ears. God, that was just embarrassing.

Max nodded. "Crazy, right?" She said with a small laugh, unknowingly making Victoria's heart sink again rapidly. "I think she just wants me to be happy, or something. But she's a little misguided. I don't think she means it maliciously."

"You're quick to defend her." Victoria snapped. Did Max have a crush on the amazing Rachel Amber too? That would be just typical.

"She's Chloe's friend." Max hesitated. "I like her too. We're not very close, but she's nice... and she's Chloe's friend." She repeated the last statement more firmly, like it was all that mattered.

Things clicked into place. Max didn't like Rachel, she was just trying her best to get along with her for the sake of that other girl. The idea that Max might like _her_ and her blue haired punk style briefly crossed Victoria's mind, but she pushed it away. It was time to stop torturing herself with possibilities and start taking action.

"Look, I admit my opinion of Rachel is biased. God knows I'm not part of her fan club. But even if I was totally neutral I would think what she's pulling is shitty. Like, she's acting like she is in charge of you, like she knows what's best. Doesn't that piss you off? She's trying to set you up with someone you don't even like and she's treating it like it's a joke."

"She means well." Max looked away as she said it.

Victoria shook her head, moving around her until they were face to face again. "Fuck what she means, Max. If she's making you uncomfortable, she needs to learn a lesson about playing with other people's lives. She's fucking with me too, whether she means well or not."

"Learn a lesson? What are you going to do, make a shitty post about her on the internet? I doubt she'll be impressed."

"No." Victoria said, her voice firm even as her hands started to shake. She stuffed them in the pockets of Max’ hoodie, as if she hoped it would give her the courage she needed. "We'll play her game and make a fool out of her. Let her think she's won, that she and her friend are right about us. Then we show them how bad we are for each other and make them regret pulling this shit."

Max looked baffled. "What?"

Okay, maybe she needed to explain better. She wasn’t even sure if it was a good idea, but she needed to convince both Max and herself that it was. "My friends have been on my case too. They keep telling me I need to lighten up and start dating someone, like I'm not good enough on my own. If we show them all that us dating is a terrible idea, they'll know better than to try again after we pretend to break up."

"Hold up." Max interjected, holding her hands up in front of her. "Are you suggesting we _pretend_ to date? That's... that's like something out of a movie, not real life!"

"Why not?" Victoria snapped defensively. "It was just an idea, Max. I'm buzzed, probably not thinking clearly. You don't have to look at me like I'm insane."

Max took a deep breath. "Look, I just don't think this is necessary. I'm going to talk to my friends and sort this out."

"Fine!" Victoria shot back. "That's great. Forget I said anything, alright? I'm drunk." She wasn't, and was sure Max could tell. This had been a terrible idea. "Good luck making peace with the hippie bitches you call friends."

Before anything else could be said, Victoria turned and stormed off as fast as her heels could carry her. How could she have been so stupid? Of course Max wasn't interested in her that way. It wasn't like she had actually asked her out, but if Max had liked her she would have jumped at the chance to be closer to her, right? Victoria knew she would have if the situation had been reversed. So this was it, confirmation that her feelings were definitely unrequited. Pathetic.

It wasn't until she was back in her dorm that she realized she was still wearing Max's hoodie. With a furious noise of frustration, she balled it up and tossed it into a corner of her room.

\---

Max was puzzling over what just happened. She couldn’t wrap her mind around it. Had Victoria Chase really just suggested they would pretend to date to get back at Rachel? A part of her had wanted to go with it, to see where it would lead, but the fact that it wouldn’t be _real_   had kept her from saying yes. She didn’t want to do this just so Victoria could get back at Rachel for some imagined slight. Being dropped afterwards would make her feel that much worse.

Still, Victoria’s reaction to being rejected hadn’t been casual. It was like she was actually hurt. It was confusing, and Max just didn’t know what to make of it.

Also, she felt trapped now. She had wanted to return to her room, forgetting about the rest of the party, but now it would be like she was following Victoria. The other girl was clearly angry with her and she didn’t want to make it worse. Besides, she wasn’t quite sure what she’d even do once she was back in her room. Her mind was so scrambled, she was sure she wouldn’t be able to focus for even a second on her homework.

Going back in wasn’t an appealing option either, she didn’t want to face any of the people that had just seen her dance and then storm out dramatically. It felt a little silly now that she had calmed down, and she hoped there was something more interesting happening inside that the people at Blackwell would be talking about tomorrow instead of her.

Two girls left the party and came her way, talking to each other in hushed tones. Max recognized them as Taylor and Courtney just as they were almost upon her. Clearly, they had seen her too. “Where’s Victoria?” Courtney asked, looking Max up and down. “Did she come here?”

“Uhm. Yeah. She just left.” Max said, pointing in the direction Victoria had just stormed off to.

“Those were some moves.” Taylor said, and her smile wasn’t entirely kind. It made Max feel like she was the butt of a joke. It was humiliating enough to know that the whole school had seen them together, she didn’t need to be teased about it too.

“Yeah, thanks.” She said, frowning. “Anyway, I have to go find someone.”

She walked in the direction of the ongoing party, despite not wanting to go back inside. Taylor and Courtney were not the people she wanted to see right now, she had to talk to Chloe, and for that she had to go back into the building.  
  
Then, she saw a flash of blue and she knew she wouldn't have to go inside after all. Chloe had come out to see her.

"Chloe?"  
  
"Max! There you are, why did you suddenly run off like that?"

Max frowned and crossed her arms in front of her. "You wonder why?"

"Come oooon, Max." Chloe laughed, making Max's irritation grow. "It's not that big a deal. Clearly we were right about Victoria, you should thank us if anything."

"You made me feel like you were laughing at me."  
  
Chloe stopped laughing at once. "We weren't! Jesus, Max. You just take everything too seriously. Rachel was just being encouraging."

"No, she wasn't. And neither were you. You just do everything Rachel wants and you'll defend her even if she does something shitty. She isn't perfect!"

Frustration Max hadn't even known about surged up inside her. Ever since she had returned, things hadn't been quite the same between her and Chloe. Rachel had replaced her at Chloe's side. Now everything was different and even though Max wanted to be supportive and understanding, she didn't like how blindly Chloe was following her. It was like she lost all focus, like she couldn't even imagine her perfect friend could do anything bad.

Now Chloe looked angry too, and unsurprisingly immediately started defending Rachel. "Seriously? Maybe she isn't perfect but at least she never left."

That stung. "So you're now making fun of me because you're mad about me leaving?" Max asked. "We've talked about this, I thought we were cool."

"Yeah, but maybe I'm more cool with Rachel." Chloe said, averting her gaze.

"That much is clear." Max said coolly. "I'm going now."

"Max?" A third voice sounded, Rachel had followed Chloe outside.

 _That's new, it's usually the other way around._ Max thought, fueled by her anger. She knew it wasn't exactly fair, but right now she didn't care much.

Rachel must have noticed the tension between them, because her face showed concern as her gaze moved from her to Chloe. This wasn’t the time. Max did not feel like she would be civil if they had a conversation about it now. Chloe seemed to share her thoughts because she turned away first.

Rachel stepped closer to Max, she was holding a drink aloft but seemed way too steady to be even a little tipsy. “Look, Max, maybe I should have acted differently but I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.” She said, putting on a smile. “Let’s drink on it?”

“No. I’m leaving.” Max snapped. “You can’t make me ignore shitty things you do by being nice to me afterwards, not even if you didn’t mean it that way.”

Without another word, Max turned and followed the path Victoria had taken earlier. She had tried to be reasonable, had even felt calm when she had talked to Victoria about Rachel and Chloe, but seeing them both misunderstand why she was upset so completely made her blood boil. She ignored the little voice inside her head that told her she would be over this in the morning, that Rachel really hadn’t meant it badly, that she should sleep on it before doing anything rash. Instead, she took out her phone as she strode back and started texting.

\---

Victoria was feeling very miserable and very sorry for herself. She had kicked off her shoes, one had landed on her desk and the other on top of Max’s hoodie in the corner. Now she was lying down on her bed in her party dress, gazing at the ceiling. Courtney and Taylor had knocked on the door earlier but she had sent them away. She did not want to see her friends.

Well, there was one friend she would have liked to see, but Nathan wouldn’t be done partying until the sun rose and whatever he had taken tonight had left his system. She wasn’t even sure if he would give her good advice if she told him her problems, but at least he would really listen.

Her phone buzzed and her heart lept. Maybe Nathan had heard she had left the party early and was wondering about her. She grabbed it and scanned the text on her screen, her eyes widening as she took in what it said.

* * *

**Max** :   
If your offer is still on the table, I’m in.

 **Max** :  
let’s teach them not to treat us like a joke

* * *

 

 


End file.
